My name is Tony Li, a rising sophomore at the Webb Schools of California. I grew up in Beijing, China, where my parents still live in. I came to the US as a international student boarder, undergoing a set of personal changes - mostly positive. I am glad to join the program along with numerous future leaders and pioneers equally passionate about science, and synthetic Biology.
Elites, apart from their own ingenuity, are to a great extent created by the pioneering fields they are in. And synthetic Biology are indeed a pioneering field. Developing and refining the necessary techniques needed to create biological systems meeting the needs of the problem, ethical and cultural considerations coexists with new technologies. It is the belief of numerous people that traditional moral concepts and practices should give way to progress, namely valid scientific advancements backed by numerous evidence, regardless of the number of supporters. Yet not everyone has full faith in science, which is a spirit by itself unscientific, and in the cases of these people valid evidence and explanations are not the most convincing. It is due to the diverse ideologies that exists that ethics should be realized for the further application of science.
Beside synthetic Biology, I enjoys tennis and making poetries. My poetries, ironically contradictory to my belief in science, often depict realms of abstract and symbolic existence beyond our own. My explanation for such irony would be the unsatisfactory contrast between the ideal and fulfilled existence and the logical conclusions about our physical world.
I have sought for intellectual companions with deeper insights about both physical and the assumed spiritual realms of the world. Please feel free to leaves comments down below.
Stem Cell Essay
By: Tatiana Zinn and Tony Li Stem cells have endlessly fascinated scientists since the early twentieth century. These cells posses the unique ability to generate into various categories of cells, ranging from skin cells to neurons, and everything in between. Stem cells continuously regenerate by the process of mitosis, which allows specialized cells to emerge and replenish numerous locations of the body. Zygotes use stem cells to form our early appendages. At this stage, stem cells are known as embryonic cells. Embryonic cells are pluripotent stem cells that originate from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst. These cells contain the limitless ability of becoming any cell type. As these stem cells mature, they become known as adult stem cells. These stem cells, while still regenerative and magnificent, are more limited in their potential. They become skin, muscle, and blood cells, but cannot regenerate the body as embryonic stem cells can. Scientists hope that embryonic stem cells, with their numerous properties, could regenerate crucial body parts, namely limbs and neurons, just like regenerative animals in nature. Yet, the omni-regenerative properties of embryonic stem cells is not without its technical difficulties and controversies; many people, for instance, refuse to exploit this new opportunity for religious or ethical considerations. Due to such obstacles, the bedside applications of embryonic stem cells are still inapplicable in many occasions. A new hope and method of regenerations is thus, in response, offered to patients. The adult stem cells - present in patients themselves - are multi-potent cells that constantly regenerate certain tissues in the body. Therefore, these cells can be extracted from the adult patients and used on themselves. Though without the controversies of embryonic stem cells, adult stem cells can only replenish limited connective tissues. In response to the previously expressed religious and ethical concerns, scientists have devised a way to bypass those worries by programming adult stem cells to contain the sought after qualities contained by embryonic stem cells. Because of these properties, embryonic stem cells are sought after by a myriad of scientists, all in hopes of stimulating our bodies and immune systems to regenerate our limbs, neurons, and other essential body parts as other animals can. The word “stem cell” has existed for approximately 148 years, yet has only been used properly for 107 years. In 1957, E. Donnall Thomas attempted the first ever bone marrow transplant. Six years later, two Canadian scientists were able to distinguish blood stem cells from other cells. The first successful bone marrow transplant was performed in 1968, a mere eleven years after the first attempt at a bone marrow transplant occurred. Embryonic stem cells were harvested from the uteruses of mice in 1981, and were the first ever to be isolated. Nearly forty years later, scientists can perform such tasks with brilliant ease. In a recent study, twenty-three severely ill patients suffering from multiple sclerosis were treated with chemotherapy (to eradicate their immune systems) and then were given bone marrow cells to regenerate their immune systems. A large portion of these patients benefited tremendously from this, one, who could barely walk before this treatment, can now downhill ski. In another study, published in the Journal of Cardiovascular Translational Research, scientists have demonstrated that stem cells can be used to regenerate heart tissue for patients with cardiomyopathy. Stem cells were injected into the tissue scars (that caused their heart attacks) during bypass surgery. Although this trial followed only eleven patients, its results were remarkable. Patients saw a forty percent reduction of scar tissue and a thirty percent increase in heart function, not to mention the seventy percent increase in quality of life in a mere 24 months after the stem cells were administered. Researchers in Cambridge, Massachusetts believe they can design synthetic biomaterials that will eradicate the need of root canals. They plan to regenerate dentin by using “native dental stem cells.” These materials are placed directly on top of the pulp tissue, causing the body to regenerate itself and its tissue. This would not only eliminate the unnecessary pain of a root canal, but it would open many doors for regenerative medicine and reparative dentistry. The possibilities of stem cells appear endless and will improve the lives of many to come. Stem cells are being researched in abundance and the human race will reap many benefits from such research. One day, scientists could even program human stem cells to regenerate entire limbs. From heart tissue mending itself to teeth repairing themselves, the future of regenerative medicine has never been more promising.
The Design
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Problem Identified: With the realization of its future possibilities in regenerative medicine, scientists have, in response, dedicated their efforts in the investigation and manipulation of such cells. Such investigations, however, need to be based on the availability of samples, thus the proper maintenance of such samples in labs is crucial. As stem cell colonies are established, nutrients and hormones provided manually, a problem came to the surface - mutation. Like all cells with DNA strands to store hereditary information, stem cell DNAs, no matter how well-nourished, still sustain constant minor changes, through both disturbances and normal DNA replications. Since stem cells in labs are maintained for numerous generations, more than that in the human body, the mutations, throughout the generations, increases exponentially in the stem cells. Due to the stem cells’ constant replication, mutations in one individual will be passed on to its “descendants” of the next generation, in which process of genetic replication new mutations is likely to occur. As Dr. Taosheng Huang, medical geneticist and director of the Mitochondrial Disorders Program at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, said, “If you want to use iPS cells in a human, you must check for mutations in the mitochondrial genome”, such problem did indeed create a significant problem and risk in stem cell therapies. It is through the constant “carry-forward” of mutations that such potentially disastrous genes are accumulated throughout generations of stem cells (Frank and Nowak 2003), such in the end will be the risk of patients.
Design Description: Considering the numerous instabilities of stem cells, caused by continuous mutation, constant maintenance is needed, for proper responses to the numerous perilous conditions of stem cells. In stem cell labs where large groups of stem cells are maintained at once, it is difficult for constant care to be carried out manually by scientists. In addition changes in stem cells are hard to be detected by people. Thus in response to the constant mutations among stem cells, possibly leading to cancer tumor colonies. Therefore, a bacterium can be created to act like microscopic “stem cell nurses”.
The bacterium is programmed to serve the following functions. Bacterias, stationed in the petri dish, should serve as feeder cells providing the stem cells with amino acids human cells cannot generate when these stem cells are detected to be in a healthy state. Yet when signals indicating radical mutations are detected, the bacterias would stop the production of amino acids, “starving” the mutated stem cells from further replication. A third function also exist in the nurses - to kill the stem cells when situation is beyond control. Such mechanism should be most accurately calibrated and controlled to ensure the scale of measurement as well as compensate for the potential errors by a single bacteria.
Elites, apart from their own ingenuity, are to a great extent created by the pioneering fields they are in. And synthetic Biology are indeed a pioneering field. Developing and refining the necessary techniques needed to create biological systems meeting the needs of the problem, ethical and cultural considerations coexists with new technologies. It is the belief of numerous people that traditional moral concepts and practices should give way to progress, namely valid scientific advancements backed by numerous evidence, regardless of the number of supporters. Yet not everyone has full faith in science, which is a spirit by itself unscientific, and in the cases of these people valid evidence and explanations are not the most convincing. It is due to the diverse ideologies that exists that ethics should be realized for the further application of science.
Beside synthetic Biology, I enjoys tennis and making poetries. My poetries, ironically contradictory to my belief in science, often depict realms of abstract and symbolic existence beyond our own. My explanation for such irony would be the unsatisfactory contrast between the ideal and fulfilled existence and the logical conclusions about our physical world.
I have sought for intellectual companions with deeper insights about both physical and the assumed spiritual realms of the world. Please feel free to leaves comments down below.
Stem Cell Essay
By: Tatiana Zinn and Tony LiStem cells have endlessly fascinated scientists since the early twentieth century. These cells posses the unique ability to generate into various categories of cells, ranging from skin cells to neurons, and everything in between. Stem cells continuously regenerate by the process of mitosis, which allows specialized cells to emerge and replenish numerous locations of the body. Zygotes use stem cells to form our early appendages. At this stage, stem cells are known as embryonic cells. Embryonic cells are pluripotent stem cells that originate from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst. These cells contain the limitless ability of becoming any cell type. As these stem cells mature, they become known as adult stem cells. These stem cells, while still regenerative and magnificent, are more limited in their potential. They become skin, muscle, and blood cells, but cannot regenerate the body as embryonic stem cells can. Scientists hope that embryonic stem cells, with their numerous properties, could regenerate crucial body parts, namely limbs and neurons, just like regenerative animals in nature. Yet, the omni-regenerative properties of embryonic stem cells is not without its technical difficulties and controversies; many people, for instance, refuse to exploit this new opportunity for religious or ethical considerations. Due to such obstacles, the bedside applications of embryonic stem cells are still inapplicable in many occasions. A new hope and method of regenerations is thus, in response, offered to patients. The adult stem cells - present in patients themselves - are multi-potent cells that constantly regenerate certain tissues in the body. Therefore, these cells can be extracted from the adult patients and used on themselves. Though without the controversies of embryonic stem cells, adult stem cells can only replenish limited connective tissues. In response to the previously expressed religious and ethical concerns, scientists have devised a way to bypass those worries by programming adult stem cells to contain the sought after qualities contained by embryonic stem cells. Because of these properties, embryonic stem cells are sought after by a myriad of scientists, all in hopes of stimulating our bodies and immune systems to regenerate our limbs, neurons, and other essential body parts as other animals can.
The word “stem cell” has existed for approximately 148 years, yet has only been used properly for 107 years. In 1957, E. Donnall Thomas attempted the first ever bone marrow transplant. Six years later, two Canadian scientists were able to distinguish blood stem cells from other cells. The first successful bone marrow transplant was performed in 1968, a mere eleven years after the first attempt at a bone marrow transplant occurred. Embryonic stem cells were harvested from the uteruses of mice in 1981, and were the first ever to be isolated. Nearly forty years later, scientists can perform such tasks with brilliant ease.
In a recent study, twenty-three severely ill patients suffering from multiple sclerosis were treated with chemotherapy (to eradicate their immune systems) and then were given bone marrow cells to regenerate their immune systems. A large portion of these patients benefited tremendously from this, one, who could barely walk before this treatment, can now downhill ski.
In another study, published in the Journal of Cardiovascular Translational Research, scientists have demonstrated that stem cells can be used to regenerate heart tissue for patients with cardiomyopathy. Stem cells were injected into the tissue scars (that caused their heart attacks) during bypass surgery. Although this trial followed only eleven patients, its results were remarkable. Patients saw a forty percent reduction of scar tissue and a thirty percent increase in heart function, not to mention the seventy percent increase in quality of life in a mere 24 months after the stem cells were administered.
Researchers in Cambridge, Massachusetts believe they can design synthetic biomaterials that will eradicate the need of root canals. They plan to regenerate dentin by using “native dental stem cells.” These materials are placed directly on top of the pulp tissue, causing the body to regenerate itself and its tissue. This would not only eliminate the unnecessary pain of a root canal, but it would open many doors for regenerative medicine and reparative dentistry.
The possibilities of stem cells appear endless and will improve the lives of many to come. Stem cells are being researched in abundance and the human race will reap many benefits from such research. One day, scientists could even program human stem cells to regenerate entire limbs. From heart tissue mending itself to teeth repairing themselves, the future of regenerative medicine has never been more promising.
The Design
Problem Identified:
With the realization of its future possibilities in regenerative medicine, scientists have, in response, dedicated their efforts in the investigation and manipulation of such cells. Such investigations, however, need to be based on the availability of samples, thus the proper maintenance of such samples in labs is crucial. As stem cell colonies are established, nutrients and hormones provided manually, a problem came to the surface - mutation. Like all cells with DNA strands to store hereditary information, stem cell DNAs, no matter how well-nourished, still sustain constant minor changes, through both disturbances and normal DNA replications. Since stem cells in labs are maintained for numerous generations, more than that in the human body, the mutations, throughout the generations, increases exponentially in the stem cells. Due to the stem cells’ constant replication, mutations in one individual will be passed on to its “descendants” of the next generation, in which process of genetic replication new mutations is likely to occur. As Dr. Taosheng Huang, medical geneticist and director of the Mitochondrial Disorders Program at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, said, “If you want to use iPS cells in a human, you must check for mutations in the mitochondrial genome”, such problem did indeed create a significant problem and risk in stem cell therapies. It is through the constant “carry-forward” of mutations that such potentially disastrous genes are accumulated throughout generations of stem cells (Frank and Nowak 2003), such in the end will be the risk of patients.
Design Description:
Considering the numerous instabilities of stem cells, caused by continuous mutation, constant maintenance is needed, for proper responses to the numerous perilous conditions of stem cells. In stem cell labs where large groups of stem cells are maintained at once, it is difficult for constant care to be carried out manually by scientists. In addition changes in stem cells are hard to be detected by people. Thus in response to the constant mutations among stem cells, possibly leading to cancer tumor colonies. Therefore, a bacterium can be created to act like microscopic “stem cell nurses”.
The bacterium is programmed to serve the following functions. Bacterias, stationed in the petri dish, should serve as feeder cells providing the stem cells with amino acids human cells cannot generate when these stem cells are detected to be in a healthy state. Yet when signals indicating radical mutations are detected, the bacterias would stop the production of amino acids, “starving” the mutated stem cells from further replication. A third function also exist in the nurses - to kill the stem cells when situation is beyond control. Such mechanism should be most accurately calibrated and controlled to ensure the scale of measurement as well as compensate for the potential errors by a single bacteria.